Couple rebuilds future with new ATV service, custom shop

AZTEC, N.M. – It was a long road from Farmington, Mich., to opening a new ATV repair and custom shop on a seven-acre unpaved parcel near Farmington, N.M.

Mike and Vikki Flanary opened Mike's ATV last month, with Mike and two assistant technicians doing repairs, restorations, and complete builds. Vikki runs the office and website.

The couple, who have been married for 22 years, lost their Detroit-area home to foreclosure in 2006. By August of that year, the couple's construction business had closed. They both worked a series of odd jobs. But when Vikki fell and broke her elbow in two places, she lost her job. At the invitation of a cousin, the Flanarys in 2007 moved to Phoenix, Ariz.

On the couple's 20th wedding anniversary, Mike began an 18-month program at a Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, with the help of student grants and loans. He grauated with a GPA near 4.0.

"The school trained us to be just good enough to be dangerous," Mike told the Farmington Daily Times. "But, honestly, I have learned more in the last year running my own shop than all of my schooling because if you're not making mistakes, breaking stuff, you're not learning."